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Politics : Sharks in the Septic Tank -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: J. C. Dithers who wrote (40303)	12/4/2001 10:37:01 AM
From: one_less	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 82486

"I'm sorry it if causes any offense." No prob. A valid point of view, worthy of additional consideration...by both of us.

To: J. C. Dithers who wrote (40303)	12/4/2001 11:03:53 AM
From: Neocon	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 82486

You are certainly correct that most believers are not very well- informed about the tenets of their own religions, much less knowledgeable enough about other denominations or religions to have an informed discussion and comparison. However, most who are pious do get what one might call the primary narratives of their religion. For example, Jews are imbued with the story of the Exodus, the reception of the Commandments, the building of the Ark, and the storming of Jericho. They know about Esther, and the Babylonian captivity; they know generally the prophecies about the Messiah; and they are taught to think of God in certain ways. For example, they commonly use the phrase "Master of the Universe" to refer to God in prayer, and their principle prayer is "Hear, o Israel, the Lord thy God, the Lord is One. Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord". Christians are imbued with the story of the Nativity, and of the Crucifixion and Resurrection. They have their imaginations filled with Wise Men worshipping the baby Jesus as the King of King. They remember that Jesus said "My God, My God, why hast thou forsaken me", to show the burden He assumed on the Cross. They remember Doubting Thomas, touching the wounds. And for most denominations, they continually re- enact the Last Supper: "This is my Body, which shall be given up for you". Among Muslims, they recall Gabriel coming to Mohammed, the Hegira, the eventual triumph of Mohammed, and so forth. I am sure J of the W could do a better job than I evoking the narratives that are meaningful to Muslims. The point is that certain themes which constitute the gist of the faiths are manifested in these narratives, and that people do learn them, often enough. A lot of the more intellectual reflection is an "unpacking" of the themes exemplified in narrative, and thus, does bear a relationship to ordinary belief. As for behavior: during the Golden Age of Islam, Jewish and Christian subjects were treated pretty well, according to the standards of the day; learning flourishe; and public charity was standard for the destitute. In places like Cordova, the Christians who visited were filled with admiration. Whatever is wrong with the Islamic world is not a direct result of Islam........